Hmmm ... will Ted Koppel take over Meet The Press?

When Tim Russert passed away earlier this year, the talk of course turned to the topic of who would take over for him on NBC's long-running Sunday news show Meet The Press. Tom Brokaw has been doing the show for several weeks now, but could former Nightline host Ted Koppel be the new guy in the interviewing chair?

Koppel has announced that he and The Discovery Channel have parted ways. He still had six months left on his contract but decided to leave. This is all just speculation at this time, of course, but since he's leaving Discovery early and the end of the year is upon us, it's interesting timing.

It's possible that someone from within NBC News might take it over, someone like Chuck Todd or David Gregory. And there's the never-ending rumor that Katie Couric could leave CBS and take over the show. Koppel would be a good fit for the show though, since he has the gravitas and the experience.

Unlike the popular opinion here, I'd welcome Ted Koppel on Meet The Press. Yes, he's part of the old guard... but he brings an honesty and informed perspective to his interviews that is in sadly short supply in television news. All you need to do is watch his Nightline interview with Mike Brown from FEMA after Katrina hit to see what I mean. He was really the first to take Brown to task, but did so without it being gotcha or attack journalism. Nothing against Russert's legacy with the program, but I think Koppel could bring a level of discourse to the program that really is missing from the Sunday morning programs. I'd watch.